Cistus

[Colin Key]

Just had a trip down to Cabo de São Vicente this afternoon and found the cliff tops alive with the vibrant colours of several species of Cistus. The most prolific (and most beautiful) is the Gum Cistus (C. ladanifer), but all make this rather bleak landscape an absolute joy at this time of year:


C. ladanifer

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o100/Passarinhos/DSCN0301a.jpg


C. albidus

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o100/Passarinhos/DSCN0158a.jpg


C. clusii

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o100/Passarinhos/DSCN0136a.jpg


These are rather old photos and taken with a Nikon Coolpix 4500 in macro mode. They are not very good but my wife utilizes these sort of shots as a basis for abstract images which she uses in her silk painting.

Colin

[Bobolink44]

beautiful shots - the pink one is an unreal color

[john robinson]

Colin
Can't see the pics I,m affraid. Page takes ages to come in then lock up when it's nearly loaded. Not even any picture placement marks.
Cheers
John

[Colin Key]

John,

Do you have any idea what your "cut off" point is in terms of file size (Kilobytes) for downloading via dial-up? Have you experienced the same problem in looking at other members' gallery images?

Colin

P.S. Does your computer run on gas? :laugh:

[john robinson]

Hi Colin
No problems with any others pics or on any other forum or site !
What size are they ? They should still come in even if it takes a week.
John

[Colin Key]

John,

Can you see either, neither or both of these?


Almond blossom (366KB)

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o100/Passarinhos/DSCN0352a.jpg



Borage (429KB)

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o100/Passarinhos/DSCN0143a.jpg

All the images I am embedding in posts (as opposed to uploading directly to my gallery) are coming from Photobucket, my web-hosting catalogue which assigns them a URL, so there really should not be a problem. No-one else has said that they are not downloading or viewable. I chose these two here because they are just above and below 400KB which is sometimes the threshold for dial-up downloading (before the connection times-out).

Colin

[john robinson]

Colin
No good. . 400kb does seem a bit large when the maximum file size on the main bird photo page is 50 KBs !
Would it not be just as easy to attatch them to the post ?
Don't worry about it.(I just won't look ! )
Cheers
JohnR

[Joe stockwell]

poor john living in the middle of nowhere has its ups and downs obviously

[john robinson]

That's it Joe.
Wot you get being a Luddite on 98 dial up. !
Love it !
Cheers
JohnR

[Simon Wates]

Just to maintain identification rigour, not just with birds but with plants too, I’d like to put the record straight:

Photo 1. Named as Cistus ladanifer – this is sort of OK but it is worth bearing in mind that many authors consider this plant on the Sagres peninsular to be a local endemic – Cistus palhinhae. It has an extra ovary and is shorter, stickier and more rounded leaves than C. ladanifer. Formations of this are habitat nº 5140 in the Natura 2000 Interpretation Manual (An invaluable tool in assessing values in surveys I find). It is not just a protected habitat but a priority habitat that is unique to the Sagres peninsular. It is therefore of maximum value in terms of conservation.

Here is the excerpt in question:

5140 * Cistus palhinhae formations on maritime wet heaths
PAL.CLASS.: 32.2B
1) Low scrub and garrigue formations of the dolomitic tableland, karsts, sands and terra-rosas, rich in endemics (Ulicetum erinacei, Genisto triacanthi-Cistetum palhinhae).
2) Plants: #Biscutela vicentina, #Cistus palhinhae, Genista hirsuta ssp. algarbiensis, G. triacanthus, Juniperus turbinata, Serratula monardii var. algarbiensis, Sideritis arborescens ssp. lusitanica, Teucrium vincentinum, Ulex erinaceus.
5) Rivas-Martínez, S., Lousã, M., Díaz, T.E., Fernandéz-González, F. & Costa, J.C. (1990). La vegetación del sur de Portugal (Sado, Alentejo y Algarve). Itinera Geobot. 3: 5 - 126.

(Note that Juniperus turbinata is now named as J. phoenacea)


Photo 3. Cistus clusii doesn’t occur in the Algarve – at least there are no records I know of – I found it to be common north of the Rio Tejo. The plant in the photo is Cistus salvifolia, which is a common shrub found in many areas.